Trump uses high-profile surrogates to broaden appeal with female voters

Former President Trump is leaning on prominent surrogates to help soften his image and broaden his appeal among female voters ahead of November’s election.

Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (Hawaii) moderated a town hall-style event in Wisconsin last month where she spoke of her own fertility struggles, teeing Trump up to discuss his proposal for the government to cover the cost of in vitro fertilization treatments.

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) used her GOP convention speaking slot to describe Trump as a boss who cared about working moms, and she told a Michigan crowd Tuesday night that women would help put him back in the White House.

Republican National Committee (RNC) co-Chair Lara Trump is a frequent presence on the airwaves and had a prime speaking slot at the GOP convention in July where she sought to humanize her father-in-law.

“Obviously using high-profile, effective surrogates is nothing new. But I think he’s been very strategic in how he’s used them,” said Sean Spicer, who served as White House press secretary during Trump’s first term. “He has appeared with them; [Tuesday] night was a town hall, so it wasn’t just a bunch of speeches. It’s a little bit more personal and engaging.”

Trump has had trouble winning over female voters in each of his past two presidential campaigns, and polling has shown he once again trails Vice President Harris, who has rapidly consolidated support among female voters since she replaced President Biden atop the Democratic ticket. Harris has made reproductive rights central to her campaign, blaming Trump for the end of Roe v. Wade and the restrictive abortion bans subsequently passed by states across the country.

The former president and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), have at times amplified women’s concerns about their campaign through their rhetoric. 

In addition to taking credit for ending Roe v. Wade, Trump has attacked the appearance of his female critics, including multiple women who have accused him of sexual misconduct. He has mocked Harris’s intelligence and her laugh, and on Sunday posted “I hate Taylor Swift” on social media, attacking arguably the most famous pop star in the world.

Vance, meanwhile, has faced scrutiny for comments during his Senate campaign in which he mocked Harris and other prominent Democrats as “childless cat ladies,” suggesting they did not have as much of a stake in the future of the country as people with children do.

The Trump campaign has argued the former president is the better candidate on issues women care about, including the economy, immigration and public safety, and that personality should not be a deciding factor.

The campaign has also used prominent female voices to depict the former president as a caring father and grandfather and as someone who supported working moms while he was in the White House.

Lara Trump has been central to the effort to turn out more female voters for the GOP nominee. In an exclusive statement to The Hill, the former president’s daughter-in-law praised him as “a champion of women long before it became a politically popular thing to do.”

“Whether hiring a woman to build Trump Tower, elevating numerous women within The Trump Organization to the rank of executive or filling his White House with women, this is a man who has truly always wanted the best person for any job, especially when that person happened to be a woman,” Lara Trump said.

“I’m looking forward to engaging more with women on the campaign trail over the next 47 days to ensure that we remind everyone that it wasn’t so long ago when we had lower gas prices, more affordable groceries, safety and security here at home and abroad, and peace through strength with Donald Trump in the Oval Office,” she continued.

Others who have hit the campaign trail for Trump include Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), the highest-ranking woman in House GOP leadership, and Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.), who traveled with Vance this week.

One notable absence has been former first lady Melania Trump, who has scarcely been seen in public since her husband launched his third White House bid in 2023 aside from attending one night of the Republican convention in July.

President Biden won 57 percent of female voters in 2020, compared to 42 percent who voted for Trump, according to exit polls. Women made up 52 percent of the electorate.

In 2016, Hillary Clinton won 54 percent of female voters, while 41 percent backed Trump, exit polls showed.

Polls have shown Harris outpacing Trump with female voters.

The vice president has repeatedly highlighted what she calls “Trump abortion bans,” blaming the former president for the restrictive laws that have been enacted since conservative Supreme Court justices whom he appointed helped overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022. Harris during last week’s debate hammered Trump on the issue of abortion, calling bans that make no exception for victims of rape or incest “immoral.”

“And one does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree the government, and Donald Trump certainly, should not be telling a woman what to do with her body,” Harris said at the debate.

An ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted after the debate showed the vice president leading by 9 percentage points among women, 53 percent support to 44 percent, and running essentially even with Trump among men. Harris fared particularly well among young women, the poll found, with the vice president leading by 23 points among women aged 18-29.

A New York Times/Siena College poll conducted after the debate found the vice president up even more among women, 53 percent to 42 percent. The poll showed Trump leading with 56 percent support to 39 percent among men.

A Trump campaign official said there would likely be additional events in the coming weeks specifically focused on winning over and energizing female voters.

“The women of this country love Donald Trump and are going to make sure we do our part,” Sanders told Michigan voters Tuesday.